Three Young Scholars from NCHU Honored with the Jade Award
2025-02-24
興新聞張貼者
Unit秘書室
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To recognize outstanding young scholars, National Chung Hsing University (NCHU) established the "Jade Award" selection, encouraging full-time faculty members under the age of 45 to engage in high-potential research fields. In the 2024 Jade Award selection, three young scholars emerged from 24 applications. The awardees are Distinguished Professor Ching-Ming Lai from the Department of Electrical Engineering (Engineering and Mathematical Sciences category), Professor Yi-Chun Chen from the Department of Forestry (Life Sciences category), and Associate Professor Ying-Chieh Lee from the Program in Landscape and Recreation (Humanities and Social Sciences category). Since assuming office, President Fuh-Jyh Jan has actively raised funds for the Jade Award, and this year, the prize amount was increased from NT$200,000 to NT$300,000.
Distinguished Professor Ching-Ming Lai's research focuses on power electronics converters, power feeder reliability analysis, energy management and optimization, electric vehicles, and microgrids. He has published 42 papers in international SCI journals, including Fuel, Energy, Applied Energy, Energy Reports, Energies, Sustainable Energy Grids and Networks, IEEE Transactions on Industry Applications, and IEEE Transactions on Power Electronics, with a total of 2,430 citations since 2020 (Google Scholar). His energy technology research has been cited and referenced by institutions such as the MIT Energy Initiative Hub, Imperial Dyson School of Imperial College London, Department of Energy at Aalborg University in Denmark, Department of Engineering at the University of Cambridge, Precourt Energy Efficiency Center at Stanford University, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), the International Energy Agency (IEA), and Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy. Over the years, he has published 81 SCI/EI journal articles, 110 international conference papers, and holds 45 domestic and international patents. Professor Lai has received numerous accolades, including the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) Wu Ta-You Memorial Award (2023), recognition as a top 2% globally influential scientist by Stanford University annually since 2021, the NCHU Outstanding Technology Transfer Award, the Outstanding Engineering Professor Award from the Taichung Chapter of the Chinese Institute of Engineers, and the Outstanding Young Award from the Chinese Society of Systems Engineering (2024).
Professor Yi-Chun Chen from the Department of Forestry focuses on developing green and carbon-reducing products from agricultural and forestry renewable materials. Professor Chen has published 50 journal papers, 102 conference papers, and delivered 18 keynote speeches, receiving research funding from the NSTC, the Ministry of Agriculture, and industry-academia collaborations. Her achievements have earned him the NSTC Future Tech Award, the Bronze Award in the Research Category of the Ministry of Education's Green Chemistry Creativity Competition, the NCHU Distinguished Faculty Award, and the National Innovation Award. In 2023, his research was featured on the cover of the Journal of Applied Polymer Science, highlighting the significance of forestry materials in international academic research. In response to global warming and climate change caused by greenhouse gases, Professor Chen explores the use of biomass materials as substitutes for fossil fuels to reduce carbon emissions. Her research includes developing green carbon-reducing materials using wood, bamboo, banana pseudostems, coffee grounds, rice husks, cellulose, lignin, rosin, curcumin, non-edible oils, and industrial waste. He collaborates with industry partners such as Cheng Loong Corp., Swancor Holding, and the Taiwan Agricultural Research Institute to apply biobased materials in construction, agriculture, and antimicrobial products, aiming to transform green materials into tangible products and promote sustainability.
Associate Professor Ying-Chieh Lee from the Bachelor's Degree Program in Landscape and Recreation specializes in environmental planning, urban planning, and landscape and ecological assessment. Over the past five years, she has consistently received research funding from the NSTC, with her studies focusing on: (1) Green infrastructure in metropolitan areas and climate change adaptation, analyzing the synergies, trade-offs, and co-benefits of using green infrastructure as a strategy for climate mitigation and adaptation; (2) Farmland transition and ecosystem services, examining the impact of changes in farmland use on agricultural and ecological systems; and (3) Teleconnections in land use and urban sustainability, emphasizing how urban activities influence distant regions through resource, goods and services, thus highlighting the need to assess sustainability beyond city boundaries and consider potential ecological inequities. Professor Lee has published 14 SCI/SSCI journal papers in journals such as Landscape and Urban Planning, Journal of Environmental Management, Ecological Indicators, and Urban Climate, along with three TSSCI journal papers and a co-authored Chinese book. She is also a member of the Urban Working Group of Future Earth Taipei at Academia Sinica.
Distinguished Professor Ching-Ming Lai's research focuses on power electronics converters, power feeder reliability analysis, energy management and optimization, electric vehicles, and microgrids. He has published 42 papers in international SCI journals, including Fuel, Energy, Applied Energy, Energy Reports, Energies, Sustainable Energy Grids and Networks, IEEE Transactions on Industry Applications, and IEEE Transactions on Power Electronics, with a total of 2,430 citations since 2020 (Google Scholar). His energy technology research has been cited and referenced by institutions such as the MIT Energy Initiative Hub, Imperial Dyson School of Imperial College London, Department of Energy at Aalborg University in Denmark, Department of Engineering at the University of Cambridge, Precourt Energy Efficiency Center at Stanford University, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), the International Energy Agency (IEA), and Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy. Over the years, he has published 81 SCI/EI journal articles, 110 international conference papers, and holds 45 domestic and international patents. Professor Lai has received numerous accolades, including the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) Wu Ta-You Memorial Award (2023), recognition as a top 2% globally influential scientist by Stanford University annually since 2021, the NCHU Outstanding Technology Transfer Award, the Outstanding Engineering Professor Award from the Taichung Chapter of the Chinese Institute of Engineers, and the Outstanding Young Award from the Chinese Society of Systems Engineering (2024).
Professor Yi-Chun Chen from the Department of Forestry focuses on developing green and carbon-reducing products from agricultural and forestry renewable materials. Professor Chen has published 50 journal papers, 102 conference papers, and delivered 18 keynote speeches, receiving research funding from the NSTC, the Ministry of Agriculture, and industry-academia collaborations. Her achievements have earned him the NSTC Future Tech Award, the Bronze Award in the Research Category of the Ministry of Education's Green Chemistry Creativity Competition, the NCHU Distinguished Faculty Award, and the National Innovation Award. In 2023, his research was featured on the cover of the Journal of Applied Polymer Science, highlighting the significance of forestry materials in international academic research. In response to global warming and climate change caused by greenhouse gases, Professor Chen explores the use of biomass materials as substitutes for fossil fuels to reduce carbon emissions. Her research includes developing green carbon-reducing materials using wood, bamboo, banana pseudostems, coffee grounds, rice husks, cellulose, lignin, rosin, curcumin, non-edible oils, and industrial waste. He collaborates with industry partners such as Cheng Loong Corp., Swancor Holding, and the Taiwan Agricultural Research Institute to apply biobased materials in construction, agriculture, and antimicrobial products, aiming to transform green materials into tangible products and promote sustainability.
Associate Professor Ying-Chieh Lee from the Bachelor's Degree Program in Landscape and Recreation specializes in environmental planning, urban planning, and landscape and ecological assessment. Over the past five years, she has consistently received research funding from the NSTC, with her studies focusing on: (1) Green infrastructure in metropolitan areas and climate change adaptation, analyzing the synergies, trade-offs, and co-benefits of using green infrastructure as a strategy for climate mitigation and adaptation; (2) Farmland transition and ecosystem services, examining the impact of changes in farmland use on agricultural and ecological systems; and (3) Teleconnections in land use and urban sustainability, emphasizing how urban activities influence distant regions through resource, goods and services, thus highlighting the need to assess sustainability beyond city boundaries and consider potential ecological inequities. Professor Lee has published 14 SCI/SSCI journal papers in journals such as Landscape and Urban Planning, Journal of Environmental Management, Ecological Indicators, and Urban Climate, along with three TSSCI journal papers and a co-authored Chinese book. She is also a member of the Urban Working Group of Future Earth Taipei at Academia Sinica.
Three Young Scholars from NCHU Honored with the Jade Award
